romney called for a change of course in the middle east and blamed the obama administration for making the region more dangerous. >> i know the president hoped for a safer, freer, and more prosperous middle east allayed with us. i share this hope. but hope is not a strategy. >> today's speech largely repackaged things romney has said before, but included a few specific ways he would change the president's approach. >> president obama fired back in an ad scheduled to run in virginia, which is a key battleground state. the ad portrays romney as reckless and amateurish during a trip to england, israel and poland. >>> how much you spending? these rising gas prices 50 cents higher in the past week alone. that costs you about $8 extra for every trip to the gas station. nbc bay area's stephanie trong joins us in oakland this evening. stephanie, gas prices and politics usually go hand in hand. what is the spin here? >> reporter: raj, it really depends on who you ask. if you ask the industry experts, they say the trend was already happening with the wholesale price. but other folks are saying i